She Deserved It
by Cinomarsh
Summary: Alternate ending to Sweeney Todd, in which Sweeney makes a small (and bloody) change of plan.


**Greetings, all! I'm back with another Sweeney one-shot, surprise surprise. I don't own ST. I've gotten some great reviews on some of my other stories so I'd really appreciate your thoughts on this! Hope you enjoy!**

It was her. I didn't know how I could've missed it before. The perfect nose, the jawline, the eyes, all still the same under the scabs. Whether it was the straw-like hair or the tattered clothes that had fooled me, I didn't know, but this was my Lucy. I knew it. And now I also knew a lot of other things.

I knew it was all that woman's fault.

She'd lied to me. She had known all along that my beautiful, innocent wife was alive and she had chosen to lie to me. Mrs. Lovett, the woman who had always claimed to care about me more than anyone else, had watched me suffer endlessly and do horrible things to everyone I met, and all for her own selfish reasons. She was disgusting.

_It's HER FAULT._

I spun around to face her, picking up the friend I had dropped beside me. I didn't need to say a word; the baker flinched and took a step back the moment our eyes met. I saw her lips move, but I couldn't hear her. I didn't need to. This was the end for her, and she knew it. Still, she backed away as I rose and made my way towards her, as if she could still convince me to leave her alone. Pathetic. I felt a smirk creep on to my lips as I crept closer and closer.

I could feel her fear in the air, and I liked it. It fueled the white-hot rage I felt. But a few steps before I took the life I'd waited far too long to take, I spotted something move out of the corner of my eye. Mrs. Lovett saw it too, and the terror in her eyes turned to panic. I knew exactly what it was.

At just the right moment, I spun around and dug my razor into Toby's throat. His eyes widened and his mouth fell open as blood spilled onto his shirt. The uproar in my mind was silenced by the emotion-filled sound of Mrs. Lovett's scream as she watched her boy fall to the ground and close his eyes on the last sight he'd ever see.

The woman ran to his collapsed form, kneeling next to him and placing his head on her lap. She petted his hair softly, as if it was the most important thing she would ever do, and spoke to him. I heard every word.

"Oh, Toby..." She cried, her words rushed, tears streaming down her face, "Oh, God, Toby, I'm so sorry. I never meant for you to get hurt. I thought you'd run away, I thought you'd run away but you didn't... You didn't, you came back for me! After all I did to you, you came back for me, and now..." She trailed off into a strangled cry. But then the cry began to form words again.

"Nothin's gonna harm you..." She sang, her voice breaking constantly but her words clear, "Not while I'm around... Nothin's gonna harm you, darling, not while I'm around..." She attempted to continue, but she choked and broke down, sobbing and cradling the boy in her arms, rocking him as if, by being kind to him, she could bring him back. Her sobs filled the room completely.

_She deserves it. _I thought to myself._ The bitch deserves every moment of this pain._

I watched her like that for quite some time. After a while she just sat there, staring at the boy's face. Then she looked at me. Her expression was empty but the seemingly endless river of tears continued. My expression must have reflected the contempt I felt towards her, because she turned away, looked into nowhere for a moment before getting up off the floor and letting Toby's body slump over. She walked towards the door without looking back and started up the stairs.

I followed her, razor in hand, ready to kill her if she tried to escape, but something I saw in her dead eyes told me she wouldn't. I found her in the kitchen, rooting through one of her cupboards. She grabbed a small bottle, closed the cupboard, and turned to me. I walked over to her and took the bottle from her hand.

The label read "arsenic".

I knew what she planned to do with it and I knew that my Lucy had died the same way, or at least tried to. It seemed only fitting. I handed Mrs. Lovett the bottle back.

She nodded at me.

"I'll be sure to take enough." She told me. She meant it. I nodded at her.

The baker walked towards her bedroom, and after a moment I heard the door shut. I then opened the front door of the pie shop, stepped outside, and waited for someone to notice the strange man covered in blood that stood in the street.


End file.
